May 23, 2023

Christian Views and Queer Acceptance

Perspectives on queerness vary greatly from religion to religion, with some accepting those in the community and others rejecting them entirely. In terms of the texts that I will be analyzing, – Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit and Pray Away – Christianity is the central religion discussed. Within Christianity and its respective branches, views on LGBTQ people tend to be polarizing. There is the belief that every person is made in God’s image, focusing on the verse Matthew 22:37-39 of the Bible that tells how “thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.” On the opposite end, there are those who embrace more beliefs from the Old Testament which centers around the theme of vengeance and God’s wrath. Considering the extreme differences in beliefs, LGBTQ acceptance is reliant on the Christian perspective in a community, household, and singular person.

“There are different sorts of treachery, but betrayal is betrayal wherever you find it.” (Winterson 113)

Christians whose beliefs are rooted in hatred are quite present in Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit. The main character, Jeanette, was born into a household and community with these values and was raised with them being reinforced. Her mother was among the vengeful part of the religion as “she spoke of her enemies, which was the nearest thing she had to a catechism,” insinuating that she believed in God’s wrath righting things the way she saw fit (Winterson 3). Jeanette’s mother was outspoken when it came to her religious beliefs and would preach them to her daughter regularly. Jeanette’s views regarding school and relationships were greatly influenced by her mom’s words. When she was younger and had little impression of the world, Jeanette expressed curiosity about the school she would be attending, to which her mother stated it was a “Breeding Ground.” Despite not understanding the phrase, Jeanette still “knew it was a bad thing, like Unnatural Passion,” showing that at a young age, she already associated homosexuality with something negative that could be compared to other bad things around her (Winterson 17). Furthermore, Jeanette’s mother spoke quite openly against homosexual couples around them. In one instance, Jeanette pondered about the two women without husbands who ran a shop together to which her mom stated that “they dealt in unnatural passions” (Winterson 6). The constant homophobia exposed Jeanette’s mother’s belief that it was her duty to preach hatefully in an attempt to steer people away from being queer. This is a common value in branches of Christianity, which tend to be the same branches that promote a position of vengeance.

“To the pure all things are pure.” (Winterson 126)

Despite the overwhelming population of hateful Christians in Jeanette’s church and household, there remained people from the church and surrounding community that were accepting of queer folks such as Elsie and Miss Jewsbury. Elsie played an incredibly significant role in Jeanette’s life as someone that she could go to for support more often than her mother. When Jeanette was in the hospital after temporarily going deaf, Elsie sat by her side and talked while her mother sent oranges in place of her presence. Elsie and Jeanette discussed philosophical topics and spoke about the way of the world together. Elsie, being much older than Jeanette, emphasized the difference between the material world and the emotional world as she had experienced it. She shared wisdom with Jeanette that “if [she] want[ed] to make sense of either, [she would] have to take notice of both” (Winterson 32). This moment is pivotal to Jeanette’s life as it demonstrates to her that religion is not the most important way to view the world, a perspective her mother has tried to ingrain in her since birth. Later in her teenage years, Jeanette was discovering her sexuality and would speak about it with Elsie as she provided loving wisdom and acceptance. Originally Elsie was the only one Jeanette confided in but Miss Jewsbury revealed that “when [Elsie] got ill that last time, she told” her in an attempt to protect Jeanette (Winterson 106). Both of them had the Christian ideology of welcoming different people with open arms and acceptance. Miss Jewsbury was also queer and took Jeanette under her wing, providing her with a safe place to stay and someone to talk to honestly. These two women were an active part of the church as practicing Christians, however, they placed kindness and understanding at the root of their religious beliefs, thus, providing a haven for Jeanette.

“[...] I loved the wrong sort of people. Right sort of people in every respect except this one; romantic love for another woman was a sin.” (Winterson 128-29)

The polarizing religious views of love versus hatred have an immense impact on queer people. According to studies done by the Trevor Project, an LGBTQ organization working to end suicide of queer youth, suicide is already the second leading cause of death among people aged 10 to 24. For those who are LGBTQ within this age range, there is a significantly increased risk. Furthermore, they are more than four times more likely to attempt suicide than non-LGBTQ youth. Rejection of identity even further increases the risk of suicide, as young LGB adults with high levels of parental rejection are eight times more likely to attempt suicide and six times more likely to have major depression. As seen in Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit, Jeanette experiences extreme rejection from her mother and religious community. This led to her moving out at the young age of sixteen and seriously struggling with depression and homelessness while trying to find an accepting community to be a part of. Another major factor regarding queer mental health is conversion therapy. The documentary Pray Away (2021) details a group that called themselves “Exodus” and promoted the idea that people dealing with homosexuality could be turned straight through prayer and investing in the Bible. Parents brought their kids into this community after they came out and it was used as a faith-based conversion therapy. Going back to research done by the Trevor Project, they found that youth who have undergone conversion therapy were more than twice as likely to have attempted suicide and more than 2.5 times as likely to attempt suicide multiple times in a year. Survivors of the group Exodus reported being suicidal as a result of not coming to terms with their authentic sexuality and the guilt that was inflicted on them. Confession with leaders of the group was outwardly designed to work through the trauma that had supposedly made them gay when in reality, it broke down queer individuals and made them feel as though there was something wrong with them because of not being straight. In contrast to a lack of support system, having at least one accepting adult can reduce the risk of attempting suicide by 40 percent among LGBTQ youth. In every study conducted about queer folks having acceptance from their family or community, suicide attempt rates were extremely decreased compared to those without support. In the example of Jeanette, she lacked familial support but was able to be safe with a few people in her community, keeping her from being completely isolated from the people in her life. Varying religious perspectives have the power to shape the mental health of queer folks by either loving them for who they are or trying to forcefully change them.

“People do go back, but they don’t survive, because two realities are claiming them at the same time.” (Winterson 164)

People whose idea of Christianity is based on love are much more likely to be welcoming towards queer folks than those whose idea of Christianity is based on righting ‘wrongs.’ We see this in Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit with the openly homophobic and judgemental Christian population that Jeanette grows up around in addition to the film Pray Away with the group “Exodus” that drew in people struggling with their sexuality to ‘fix’ it with religion. The vengeful part of Christianity drives LGBTQ youth from their homes, communities, and former lives while seriously negatively affecting their mental health. The harm inflicted on developing minds causes immense trauma that can take a lifetime to work through. Comparatively, the accepting part of Christianity saves queer youths who are rejected from their communities and shows them that religion can be rooted in love, despite the hateful messages pushed out by other religious groups.

Works Cited

“Facts about LGBTQ Youth Suicide.” The Trevor Project, 15 Dec. 2021, https://www.thetrevorproject.org/resources/article/facts-about-lgbtq-youth-suicide/. Accessed 23 May 2023.

Pray Away. Directed by Kristine Stolakis, Netflix, 2021.

Winterson, Jeanette. Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit. Open Road + Grove/Atlantic, 2007.